Test Ninja Blade

From Software has a lot of experience with action and combat games, notably with Tenchu and Armored Core. Without surprise, this latest release follows the very technical Ninja Gaiden II with which very few elements are shared. We find the same ninja theme with a very typical looking hero.

Ken Ogawa is a modern day ninja, with all of the same attributes of his medieval brothers, but with a very original mission of taking out his adversaries. The strange creatures that you have to take out are in fact the result of a genetic mutation linked to a powerful virus. Be warned, you only have to kill them or remove their limbs.

Ninja Blade is a game with concentrated action which leaves little respite for the players, with it being a lot less technical then its direct competitor. In Tokyo, in the year 2015, you change alternatively between action and exploration. It is limited to short passages, trying to improve the skills of your hero.

You will have to jump and run over unstable blinds, with a few puzzles being present to remind the player that they also have a giant shuriken. This instrument of war originally had three roles. But its use is so penalizing that in the end, it is only really used to progress the story line.

It can, for example, put out fires, immobilize creatures and even produce electric shocks. Here you won’t be discreetly trying to infiltrate, as your best way forward is with violence. In total you will have three weapons available, with each of them having a precise role to play, with it not being possible to neglect any of them.

The traditional saber is the weapon that you use everywhere. Quick and effective, it is used in most fights. There are times when you will meet a powerful enemy, and it is here that the heavy saber will allow you to prevail and take them down, although you will need good timing to do it.